Combat Kisses
by Glimare
Summary: One Shot: Kyoko needs help with a skill for a role and asks Ren for help. For some reason, getting out of holds is not clicking for her, so he sets up a punishment game: she fails to get out of a hold in ten seconds, and he gets to kiss her. Even with the boundaries they've set, Ren can't help but enjoy himself. T because I'm paranoid


**Disclaimer:** I don't own skip beat! as attracted as I am to animated men, I cannot own them. This is why I'm single. *cries*

I've been working on this one shot for a while so have fun! Lots of kissing references, but very little seen. not my best work, but still enjoyable. Ren may be a little OOC, but I was having fun. Enjoy!

* * *

_**Combat Kisses**_

Ren sighed heavily as he ran a hand through his hair. Really, she was usually so much faster at picking these kinds of things up. Romance not so much, but action? Considering when she was Setsu she could reverse their positions when he was about to lose control, he thought for certain she could get out of a few holds. "Mogami-san... did you forget what I taught you already?"

"It's not my fault your hands are so big Tsuruga-san!" Beet red, Kyoko tried once again to get her wrists out of his one handed grip behind her back. They went through this not long ago but she just could not find a way to get out of it.

If she didn't need help with her bit role being the hostage who got away in a movie, she never would have asked him. It wasn't a large role, but it wasn't a bullying role either. All she had to do was get out of some thug's grip, run away while people 'shot' at her and fall out of sight. Her character would later be found by police dogs and spend the rest of the film in the hospital. Forensics on her clothes would help the detectives find the others and she would be mentioned at the end as crucial to the case. But to do this role, she had to learn to get out of strong grips and fall without hurting herself.

Falling was easy. Getting out of grips? Not so much. Tsuruga's hands were strong!

"You just need to twist your wrists towards the weak points," Ren reminded her. He wasn't even using a tight grip this time, just enough to hold her. Kyoko's wrists were tiny compared to his hands, and if he wasn't careful he could easily bruise her. He didn't want to hurt her in any way, shape, or form.

"I'm trying!" Weakly she forced her arms to go downwards, which was not working. She was only getting more and more frustrated.

He sighed heavily. This was not working. "My thumb's on top. The thumb is the weakest point of grips. The pinky is the strongest. You put your movements towards the thumb and-"

"I'll slide right out! I know!" Quickly she changed directions, but still struggled to release herself. This really wasn't working. After another minute, she managed to get out of it. "There! See? I told you I could do it."

"After five minutes and seven weak attempts and help." He was not pleased. Folding his arms, he sighed once again, sparking her dread. This really was no good. Ren's reasons to teach her had little to do with acting and more with self-defense. If Fuwa or that beagle reappeared without him around, he wanted her to be able to at least get away from them. "In real life, you may only have one chance to get out and run away."

"Errr..." Kyoko looked away, sweating. She knew that was true. She really needed to know how to fight, if not for roles then for her own good. Her work and her acting classes kept clashing so she hadn't learned much of the basics. Her sempai looked over her for a minute, thinking, before coming to some kind of conclusion. She wasn't sure if she was going to like it.

Nodding, he gave her a proposition. "How about this: I'll arrange for an hour a day in LME's dojo so I can teach you some basic Judo. Tipping your weight, throwing people, getting out of holds, and falls are easier to master in the right environment. At least it has padded floors, unlike this room."

His student looked around uneasily at the Love Me section's office, desk set to the side of the room for their impromptu lesson. Ren had some extra time so it didn't matter that much to him, and she didn't have school that day so the lesson came fairly easily. He did not have extra time that night and honestly, he wasn't confident about controlling himself in his own apartment at the moment. This was safe.

"I... I can't ask you to go out of your way like that!" Kyoko tried to tell him no, which only reinforced his need to teach her to defend herself. She was too dismissive of herself. "I'll just ask-"

"I need to practice a bit for my next role anyway," he lied quickly. He didn't have a martial arts role yet, but it was something he needed to keep up just in case. Sneaking around to keep his fighting and acrobatics up was a bit of a bother. This was a double save really. "Teaching is often the best form of practice."

"I see..." The idea sinking in, Kyoko accepted it and bowed politely. "In that case, please take care of me."

"I'm not done Mogami-san." A dark smirk appeared on his face for a moment before he fixed it. He could not scare her, not yet at least. Thankfully she didn't see it. "To make sure you put all your effort into learning, I propose a punishment game."

"Punishment game?" She cocked her head to the side innocently, making it a little harder to say what he wanted. But said he did. He had a good excuse to go with it anyway.

"Yes. When we go through holds, and you fail to get out of them within ten seconds, I kiss you."

All the color drained from her face at the idea. Doom fell upon her as she gaped at him. This... This PLAYBOY! Ren continued, forcing himself to ignore her look and feeling guilty. "For now it'll only be for hand holds of course, as I can't expect you to get out of the hard ones yet. You should be able to get your hands away from me within ten seconds.

"Likewise," he went on to soften the blow, "if you ever manage to put me in a grip I can't get out of for ten seconds, you can do whatever punishment you want to me. Within reason."

"Wh... what?" Fear and dread stayed on her face as she tried to hide how she really felt about all of this. She was very embarrassed about the entire idea. "How... how can you..."

The answer was obvious. "I know you'll do everything you can to avoid it Mogami-san. This is motivation to hurry your lessons along effectively, nothing more. Fear of a consequence is often a good motivator.

"Besides, Natsu's role is a teenaged high school girl, am I right?" He gave her a critical eye, continuing on about work. "At the moment, she merely bullies her classmates. But in the future, isn't it likely she will have a boyfriend or a male target? She seems to be the type who goes after whatever she wants without question." His eyes narrowed a little. "Do you think she'd turn red at the slightest lip contact and go into hysterics?"

"I..." The idea clearly hadn't hit her until then. Natsu would surely kiss her target's love interest in order to torture the poor girl more. And even if Natsu didn't, one day she'd be asked to kiss someone on screen. "Didn't think about that..."

"Thought at much." Ren nodded, satisfied that his logic was sinking in. "In order for you to become a stronger actress, you need to become accustomed to kissing. Within reason."

"Question sempai!" She raised her hand as if she was in class, which lightened his expression a bit. A bit of panic was on her face. "Just... where... are you... going to..."

"Only exposed skin," he told her flatly, minimizing damage. "Lips and under clothes are off limits. Agreed?"

Feeling like she was stepping into a trap, Kyoko watched him carefully as she nodded. "Agreed."

* * *

Yashiro was struggling to not giggle like a school girl as he watched the two 'actors' workout on the dojo floor. The room wasn't used much when classes weren't in session, so there weren't many people there to watch. The manager had a front row seat to the most squeetastic event of their love lives to date! Ren and Kyoko wore gis belonging to the agency, but at that moment it looked like Kyoko's top was ready to fall off. The throws and how much she struggled out of the holds made it very loose. Her undershirt was much appreciated by everyone.

It still didn't stop the barrage of kisses she received that day though.

From his count, Ren managed to lay his lips on her face, neck, and hands a grand total of thirty-six times. He seemed to particularly like kissing the back of her neck that was only exposed in that outfit. All of Kyoko's usual clothes would cover it up without question, so Yashiro had a fairly good idea what Ren's real goal was by kissing that region all the time.

Sadly, for the men, the timer went off, ending the session. A very red and sweaty girl glared up at her sempai, not happy about how hard he pushed her that day. The kisses turned her a crimson red every time. Ren chuckled as he offered his hand to help her get off the floor from their last round. "Really Mogami-san. It wasn't that bad."

"Ten seconds is too short a time to get out of those holds!" She screamed indignantly, refusing help and getting up on her own. Despite knowing she had to get used to the idea of kissing for her job, her stubbornness for purity fought the idea with all its might.

"So you didn't notice the three holds you managed to get out of?" Both she and Yashiro blinked in surprise. She managed to break away within ten seconds three times? Ren was highly amused. "Course they were the easiest ones to get out of, but you managed it. You're getting faster with a few of them too. Practice and motivation breeds improvement."

He didn't mention how she froze up nearly every time he kissed her of course. If they were going to continue these 'lessons', he had to keep her embarrassment to a minimum. Having a time limit and other rules helped, but it would be how well Ren behaved that would make the difference. It wasn't often he got an excuse to kiss the woman he loved after all. She may even learn to enjoy it one day.

At the moment though, complementing Kyoko brought her anger down and her embarrassment under wraps. Making everything about the job did wonders for her disposition. Ren really had a handle on her. He smiled like normal, keeping this casual. "So what is your schedule like tomorrow?"

"I have a script reading until six... and a job until eight." She did that strange pause she always did whenever it came to one of her jobs. Whatever it was, she didn't want him to know. Sawara swore it was just embarrassing to her and insisted those two didn't know. At least it was regular work. "How about you Tsuruga-san? Yashiro-san?"

Now it was near impossible for the manager to smile at this outcome. Tomorrow night looked like another night of kisses and handholding.

* * *

Ren secretly grinned to himself at the prospect of what was going to happen in about two hours. One week with this 'combat kissing' arrangement and he was sleeping pretty well. Of course he was holding back a good deal, in both subjects, but at least he wasn't as frustrated at his lack of progress as he had been the past year or so. Kyoko was learning fast how to adapt to his holds, snaking out of them faster and more efficiently each time. She wasn't freezing up as often when he kissed her either. Still turned red though, which was just fine for him. Man that girl was cute.

He was coming down to the garage to bring his car around to collect Yashiro and a few things they were picking up when he heard two voices, arguing. Sighing to himself, he took out his phone to pretend to be busy and ignore them. He did not want to get involved in anyone else's romantic problems. If the actor made it clear he wasn't interested, they would likely not care he was there.

Then he recognized their voices, his stomach tensing immediately. Fuwa was shouting at Kyoko again. He had no clue what sparked it, but it still gave off an atmosphere no one could enter. All he could do was wait in the stairwell nearby and try not to imagine anything terrible happening, either between the two or himself towards either of them.

"I'm telling you to stop calling me! It's interfering with work!"

"Oh like your work is so great." Brat. "You're just a hack actor people have pity on because you're so desperate to be seen."

"Hack actor?!" Ren struggled to stay where he was and not rip the man's head off. "Do you have any idea how much work I put into my job?! Have you read the reviews?! Even the great Hizuri Kuu acknowledges my abilities! LME wouldn't have just anyone playing Mio! Or Natsu! Or-"

"ALL BAD GUYS!" Jerk had no idea how the acting world worked. "You can't be anything but a bad girl! That makes you a hack!"

"Says the man whose last praised PV was the one _I_ was in!" Good point Kyoko. Hit him where it hurts. "Your acting is pathetic! You don't even have lines in those things! Stick to music! It's all you're good for!"

"Why don't you stick to serving guests!" What was with this kid? Ren sat down on a nearby step, listening intently. "You clearly aren't interested in anything but romance!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!"

"I have eyes Kyoko! Even if you don't!" The actor in the stairwell's eyebrows shot up, guessing what he was talking about even if she hadn't. Blushing a slight bit, he ran a hand through his hair. The mark he was making on her neck each lesson must have been seen. He intended for it to be his little secret, personal satisfaction only. The only way anyone could have seen it was if she was wearing something with less cloth than her gi, which for her was rare. Just the idea that someone else saw it warmed him up. Hopefully Kyoko wouldn't confront him about it any time soon.

"Your eyes are seeing things!" He could hear the venom in her voice as she stated exactly what he knew was true. "I have no interest in that filthy emotion! I have told you time and time again! I am not going to fall in love with anyone!"

Ouch.

"Then what's that kiss mark doing on your neck?!"

"I got a bruise when I stumbled into a coatrack! End of story!"

Ren blinked, wondering if that actually happened of it was merely a lie. She could have said it was a bug bite, but she probably knew the difference. Since she had little experience with kissing and hickies, she'd likely pass off any mark with another injury. It was both a comfort and saddening that she wasn't the least bit flustered about it.

"Yeah right! Don't cover for that pretty boy actor! He did that to you didn't he?!"

"It was a coatrack! I wasn't paying attention!"

"You never pay attention! What else did he do to you?!" Oh if he ever found out just how many times he got to kiss her in the past two weeks, he was sure the musician would have an aneurism.

"It was a flippin' coatrack you idiot! I don't have time for foolishness!"

"Don't turn your back on me!"

"Bite me!"

"Kyoko!"

"Hands off!" Ren tensed, ready to leap out and help if there was a single sign she needed it.

"You're going home! Right now!"

"In your dreams!"

"You broke your promise!" Promise?

"Who's going around breaking promises?!"

"You are! Saying that's from a coatrack when it was that guy who marked you! You let him-"

"It was from a coatrack! Tsuruga-san would never act like you do! He's a professional and a gentleman! You're just a punk kid who lost his toy!" Ren held back a snort at her comment. Her statement was rather flattering towards him, but jarring to the other man. Punk kid...

"That's it! You can't see anything but your fantasy world! You're going back to Kyoto! A clueless girl like you should never-"

"Get your hands off me!" Again he tensed, wired to spring forward.

"No! You're-"

"Let go!"

"Kyoko! Listen to-"

"I'm warning you! Let go!"

"Not until you-"

Before Ren could get up and intervene, he heard a yelp and a grunt. Then Fuwa screamed before finally appearing to his view, thrown to the cement maybe five yards away. The kid looked stunned, gaping at the person who threw him. More shouting followed, stunning them both.

"I am not your toy Shoutaro! You don't own me, you don't order me around! Not call me! Don't talk to me! Until you're capable of being a responsible adult, I don't even want to see you! Never touch me again! Got it?! You lost all rights to me when you tossed me aside! I don't have to listen to you ever again! So do the best thing you can and leave me alone!"

The stunned musician just stared at her as she easily disappeared through another exit, likely going to another job. Fuwa just looked after her exit for a long time on the ground, while Ren watched him, mulling over what he just heard and saw. That was... interesting...

"Feisty isn't she?"

Fuwa finally realized he was being watched, turning his head to see a smug Ren still sitting on the stairs. The man grinned. "I taught her that. And she's probably right about the coatrack. Mogami-san isn't much for lying.

"Now," he got up and quickly approached the young man still shocked and sore from being thrown aside by a seventeen year old girl, "tell me about this so called promise of yours."

Fuwa didn't have a chance as he saw first hand the smile and look Kyoko faced each time she lied and Ren wanted to have a little fun getting the truth out of her. Actually, this one was a lot more menacing, to the point an infant could tell what he was thinking. Answers now, or die a painful and humiliating death.

* * *

Week three of their arraignment and Ren was having a much tougher time stealing kisses from her. He knew from the beginning she would master the basics quickly and eventually he wouldn't be able to hold back, but he was hoping he'd be able to just play around for a little longer. Now all he could do was focus on not using all this strength against her and actually leave bruises. His holds had to be a lot more complicated to keep her still for more than ten seconds.

He'd be proud if he didn't want to kiss her so badly.

The man finally managed to throw her over his hip to the mats below to get ready to pin her at last, only for the hundred pound girl to hook her foot around his weaker ankle and get tripped up himself. Too surprised by her sudden movements, Ren barely managed to break his fall when a mass of sweaty white leapt on his chest, throwing the air out of him. Kyoko did not hold back or give him a second to recover his senses before she managed to jam the heel of her hands into just the right spots on his arms to keep them there. Lithe legs jabbed and pinned the rest of him down, forcing the man to gape at the pixie panting inches from his face. She put everything into that last attack, and won.

'_Whoa...'_ Her determination and position surprised him yet again, keeping him silent and still for much too long. Did Kyoko really just beat him? Sweet, little Kyoko-chan who dreamed of being a princess with fairy friends? Was this for real?

Suddenly her determined expression changed to a broad excited grin. "I won!"

"_Yeah..._" Dazzled by her smile, Ren accidentally slipped into English, but his break from character was quickly forgotten by everyone, even himself. Without warning, Kyoko closed the distance between their mouths, giving him a quick, though hard, kiss.

If it lasted more than three seconds, he would have joined in it. But three seconds was not enough time to overcome his shock

Kyoko kissed him.

Kyoko kissed _him!_

On the lips!

And it wasn't a light fairy kiss either!

It was still an inexperienced, beginner's kiss, but a kiss was a kiss. And it was from Kyoko. To him. On the lips.

Why did it only last _three seconds_?!

Ren was still in shock when it ended, blinking at her blankly. Her excitement was still there for another few seconds, then she realized what she just did. Dread and horror flooded her face just as a bemused smirk was starting on his, his mind still registering what was happened like a foolish teenager in love. He was late in reacting to her jumping off of him and incessantly begging for his forgiveness. He was still laying down with bemused shock, smiling with only one thought in his head.

'_She kissed me. Kyoko kissed me. I didn't have to trick her or anything. She kissed me._' If he knew one kiss from her would turn him into a love-struck teenager...

"-I AM SUCH A SHAMELESS HUMAN BEING! I WAS CAUGHT UP IN THE MOMENT AND LOST MYSELF AND DIDN'T REALIZE WHAT I WAS DOING! I'M SORRY TSURUGA-SAN! I'M SO SORRY! PLEASE FORGIVE ME FOR MY BRASHNESS!"

'_Oh right. Forgot who I'm kissing for a moment._' Reality finally returned to the young man as her shouts hit astronomical numbers. It really took him that long to realize she was begging for forgiveness, and his manager was holding back his laughter and fangirl squeals not too far away. He wouldn't be surprised if people were watching them on the security cameras and having a good laugh either. His face started turning red as he realized how out of character he was acting right then. '_I'm never going to hear the end of this one._'

While she went through her extreme apologizing rant, Ren mentally cooled down and thought of how to handle this situation. Considering he had witnessed or took part in all her previous kissing experiences (he hoped), and all the things he said about them before, he had to think of something good. He had a fairly good idea how her mind worked so he knew how to handle this, but it was harder with the thought of her willingly kissing him like that constantly going through his head.

Slowly he brought up his hands and started clapping. It stopped her ranting on and calmed down Yashiro enough to watch properly. When it was finally quiet, Ren spoke. "Very well done Mogami-san. I do believe you have mastered the basics of Judo."

He could easily picture her shocked face as he pushed himself into a sitting position, smiling. Kyoko just gaped at him as he gave a normal smile to her. He wasn't lying and he wasn't mad at all. Honestly, he was on the verge of laughing. She was just too cute, especially when he teased her. "I knew you could turn the tables on me eventually. Just thought it'd take a lot longer. Your character will have no problem getting away from her kidnappers now."

"Ahh... Yes..." Her face lost some its blush, enough to calm her raging heart at the least as he passed it off as a lesson well learned. They attained their goal, and rather quickly. "Thank you... for all your help... but... I..."

"Did you forget you could punish me too?" The thought finally surfaced as he smiled at her, holding back so many emotions. The memory of their deal started to come back to her, slowly. "Interesting choice of punishment really, but it does help your acting skills to practice initiating kisses on others.

"If you want to practice that as well, I am available." He looked away, trying to act like he wasn't self-conscious about it. Kyoko though turned to stone. "We'd have to change environments though. This is far too public a place and the lighting is too good."

"Tsu-Ru-Ga-San..." The woman's dark growl was exactly what he was expecting, along with her next set of lines. "You... careless playboy! Don't you dare play with the Japanese girl's heart! Kisses are-"

"And I've told you before that I don't go around kissing just anyone." He looked back to her from the corner of his eye. Her blush was gone but she was still staring at him. That was what he was aiming for and he was glad it was sinking in. "Unless it's for work, I only kiss those I consider important."

"Have you kissed Yashiro-san then?"

The question was so out there, Ren barely had a second to think. "I'm pretty sure he'd knock a few teeth out if I tried."

"Damn straight." The manager's two-bits settled the matter for good. It was never going to happen.

"Either way," the actor pushed himself to his feet before offering her a hand up, "I think we've accomplished our goals here. Unless you wish to continue these lessons that is. I am at your disposal."

Kyoko sat where she was for a few seconds longer than necessary, looking up at him along his offered hand. Likely she was lost in some odd thought, but she wasn't blushing or angry anymore, and certainly not apologetic. After that moment, she smiled and took his hand, letting herself get up at last. "Thank you for all your help Tsuruga-san. I will do my best to use everything you have taught me in my upcoming roles. Forgive me for troubling you for so long."

"It wasn't any trouble at all." Damn. She was in super polite mode, a state almost equal to his fake smile. It was harder to tell what she was feeling or thinking when she went like that. "I enjoy helping you grow Mogami-san. Any time you need help, don't hesitate to ask."

A small, real smile appeared on her face. "I only wish I knew how to repay you for all your kindness."

"Just remember me in your acceptance speech when you win awards in the future." It was a feeble response, he knew it, but it made her blush and start denying she would win awards. Kyoko was back to normal. That was all that counted.

As they started out of the dojo to change and head out for the evening, including dinner, Ren's eyes fell on the real payment he got from this charming young girl. His kiss mark was still strong on the back of her neck (and he could see the bruise she was talking about not that long ago too) and the memory of her kiss to him would be giving him sweet fantasies for quite some time. Maybe she'd take him up on those kissing lessons he offered one day.

One thing was for certain. He'd never see Judo quite the same again.

END

* * *

A/N: My sister taught me a little Judo so I know a small amount of what I'm talking about. Since Kyoko did flip Ren like that once, I thought it was the best fighting strategy for her. holds are a big part of it if i remember right, but even if not, there's some decent info here. It's important for everyone to know how to get out of handholds, and the thumb is the target when you do.

Fighting aside (there was little seen because I only know a little) I thought Ren kissing her as punishment was pretty fun. He had good points, but we all know the truth. I always wanted Kyoko to win the fight once at the end and kiss him in excitement. I was planning on them making out at that point, but that didn't quite fit. Having ren in shock then grinning like a school boy just seemed more likely. I'm pretty sure that there's only two ways he'll buck up the courage to Kiss her at this point: she either starts it or they are separated for a long time and he's unable to stand the thought of losing her another time. Here, she kissed him. ^^V

Anywho, comment, fav, talk to me! I've got school work to get back to. XP


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